Just like so many other families, we’re busy, and unfortunately the first thing that always get’s thrown on the back-burner is deciding what’s for dinner. I don’t know why I do this. It’s a known fact that we need to eat every day, but for some reason I have a bad habit of putting it off until the last minute and then we usually end up getting takeout… not good.
Meal planning is great, when I remember to do it. It removes so much stress (and last-minute take-out), but I have a really bad habit of repeating the same meals every week or two, because I can’t think of anything else to cook. Inevitably, everyone gets bored of eating the same thing, so we give up, and the cycle of dinner-time procrastination continues.
For the past week I’ve been on a mission to find a more effective way to meal plan. I decided to make a list of easy dinner ideas that I could easily change up to keep from repeating so much. The emphasis here is on easy ideas.
This is what I’ve come up with:
Pasta Night
This is super easy since most pasta can be cooked in under 15 minutes. Sauces can be as easy or as complicated as you want them to be (with canned, jarred, or homemade sauces).
Pasta Ideas- Spaghetti, Fettuccini, Linguini, Bow Tie Pasta, Macaroni, Angel Hair
Sauce Ideas- Marinara/Tomato, Alfredo, Cheese Sauce, Butter & Parmesan (this one is the favorite of both of my kids).
You can also add vegetables, beef, chicken, or whatever meat you like to any of these.
Just mix and match! There are so many possibilities with pasta!
Taco Night
This is a staple at our house. Tacos don’t have to be the same every time you make them: hard or soft shells, beef, chicken, shrimp, pork, be adventurous! (Or don’t be, it’s up to you.)
Instead of using taco shells, you could also make Taco Salads, or try this recipe for Taco Rings.
Quesadillas
I usually end up making these when we have tacos for dinner (because my kids love them), but they can easily be a stand alone meal too, and they are sooo easy to make.
My kids love chicken and cheese quesadillas, but there are so many other options: ground beef, fajita meat with onions and peppers, or a vegetarian style quesadilla would be great. A few ideas that are a little more “out there” could be a Philly Cheesesteak style, Chicken Bacon Ranch, or Buffalo Chicken quesadilla.
Baked Potatoes
This is another great dinner to mix and match with! I like to cook the potatoes in the slow cooker so they’re ready at dinner time.
Meat Topping Ideas: Shredded chicken, brisket, pulled pork, ground beef, taco meat (maybe leftover from Taco Night), chili, get creative!
Of course you can always do the usual toppings— butter, sour cream, cheese, onions, chives, and bacon bits.
Sandwiches
I know sandwiches sound really boring for dinner, but they don’t have to be. My favorite sandwich to make is ham and cheese on Hawaiian Rolls. Ridiculously easy. They’re really good cold, but you can also make them warm with this recipe from Kings Hawaiian.
Keeping with the warm sandwich theme, you could go with a French Dip, cheesesteak, or meatball subs (Pinterest is your friend, there are dozens of recipes for any of these).
Pizza!
Pizza for dinner does NOT have to mean delivery. You can make your own pizza at home; use pre-made crust or make your own dough, get as involved as you want!
If you need a good dough recipe, try this one from Bigger Bolder Baking.
This is also a really fun dinner for kids to help with; they can put together their own pizza (sauce, cheese, and toppings), then an adult can take over for the actual cooking part.
There are also a lot of different breads you can experiment with for pizza crusts:
- Bagels
- Tortillas
- Pita Bread
- French Bread
- English Muffins
- Flattened Biscuits
Breakfast for Dinner
This was always a favorite of mine growing up, and it’s a pretty easy dinner to make.
- Toast
- Bacon
- Waffles
- Sausage
- Pancakes
- French Toast
- Hash Browns
- Eggs Over Easy
- Scrambled Eggs
None of these are difficult or very time consuming, and my kids love all of them!
Again, this isn’t a meal plan; this is to help inspire your meal planning, or to help fill in the gaps between your family’s favorite meals/recipes. You can go through this entire list a few times and not repeat a meal. Which is definitely something I need.
Hopefully this helps inspire some new meals at your house, too!
